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Here Are All The People Plotting to Kill the McDonald's Happy Meal

FILE - This Nov. 8, 2010 file photo shows a Happy Meal at a McDonald's restaurant in San Francisco, Ca. McDonald's, Burger King, Kentucky Fried Chicken and other fast-food companies are being sued in Chile for violating the country's new law against including toys with children's meals. The law took effect in July 2012 and its author, Sen. Guido Gerardi, filed suit Wednesday, Aug. 1, 2012, accusing the companies of knowingly endangering the health of children by marketing kids' meals with toys. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)

This week, Brazilian consumer protection agency Procon fined McDonald's $1.6 million for targeting children with advertising and Happy Meal toys.

"This is not an isolated case," urged Renan Ferraciolli, Procon's top lawyer. "There's no need to appeal as they do to children without the maturity or the rationality to enter the market as consumers."

The ban on free toys in unhealthy meals had been introduced one year previously in another California jurisdiction, Santa Clara County.

County Supervisor Ken Yeager explained the reason for the ordinance, claiming that it "prevents restaurants from preying on children's love of toys" to sell fast food, and that it "breaks the link between unhealthy food and prizes."

Chile:

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McDonald's began offering apples in its Happy Meals in 2011. (AP/Keith Srakocic)

Chile issued a similar law in June 2012, requiring fast food restaurants, cereal brands, and popsicle makers to eliminate the practice of including free toys, crayons, and stickers in their packages.

In a sign that such laws are serious for fast food chains, KFC reacted by changing their marketing outlook. "What we have done," said marketing director Virginia Ng, "is stopped marketing to kids in anticipation of the global movement of marketing to children being unethical...We offer meals for families, but the toys and the rest of it, no."

Is McDonald's slipping?

Though it began offering healthier options, like apple slices in Happy Meals, in 2011, McDonald's has stood its ground in the face of Happy Meal naysayers. "We are very proud of our Happy Meals and will vigorously defend our brand, our reputation and our food," said spokeswoman Danya Proud.

Having topped growth records in recent years, this year's slowdown shows that times are changing for the restaurant chain. Matthew DiFrisco of Lazard Capital, a market research firm, rates McDonald's as 'Neutral' — he believes its stocks will remain cheaply valued moving forward.